Date: Tue, 21 Jan 2020 14:08:44 +0000 (UTC) From: Fritz Subject: Raising Boys 61 Thanks for all your responses to this story. Comments, questions or even criticisms are always welcome at fritz819@yahoo.com A special thanks to the generous readers who have made donations in our name to Nifty. I hope we can all find it in our hearts to do what we can to support the wonderful gift of stories found on this site. Again, thank you. http://donate.nifty.org/donate.html RAISING BOYS 61 When my alarm went off I tried to grab it quickly so it wouldn't wake Poppy. It turned out that he was already awake, enjoying being spooned and the feel of my hard cock rubbing against his hairy crack. He pushed that bubble butt against me, teasing me. Then he turned over and kissed me. "I thought you might be trying to fuck me, and then I realized you were still asleep and just enjoying the sensation of something furry against your hard dick," he said. "I think you know I could've fucked you pretty easily last night after I found your special spot," I said. "I think you're probably right," he said. "I'd have taken both your big old dicks I was so hot." "I also think we both know if I'd tried to rub my hard-on against the stone-faced man I met one week ago, I'd have had my ass handed to me," I said. "What a difference a week makes," Poppy said. "Where's our friend who was playing with us when I went to sleep?" he asked. "Don't you mean when you passed out?" I asked. "That was one of the hardest climaxes I could ever imagine." "If I'd known I could feel like that that, there's no telling what I'd have been jamming in my ass," he laughed. We had turned onto our backs now, his arm around me. Then he turned to me and began to gently suck one of my nipples. It felt good and I was enjoying it. He had a nice suction going and his hand was gently rubbing my hairy tummy. It was feeling nice as his warm hand went lower and he began to comb my thick pubes with his long fingers. I was enjoying his warm hand on my body and actually gasped softly as I knew his hand was about to touch my hard cock. That did not happen as our doors burst open and three naked boys, followed by Bradley burst through our front doors and jumped onto the bed with us. Bradley was apologizing, saying he and Kurt had the boys in the pool for a morning swim when they suddenly decided to wake up their daddy. I was delighted to see them and smell them and touch them. Not being able to go upstairs to tuck them in was something I was finding most difficult. "I'm so sorry," Bradley said. "We were all in the pool having a nice morning swim when they just decided to make a run for it." "I know how fast they can break away," I said. "Don't apologize. I gave the boy a hug and a morning kiss as all three boys were crawling all over Poppy. Our bed was now a mass of tiny little arms, tiny little legs, tiny little cocks, tiny little balls and tiny little other boy parts. Poppy was clearly having a blast as the boys began to slowly settle a bit. "We should try to hold the noise down," I said. "Jack and Rick are still sleeping." "Oh no," Bradley said. "Jack was with us in the pool and is now fixing breakfast. Rick was already dressed and leaving for an early meeting in Nashville after he made sure things would be handled here today. Ren was swimming with us and Rhett and Kurt are helping out with breakfast. Gil was here but he had already showered and was headed home to get his girls off to school." "Sounds like you guys have everything organized," I said. Jack and Ren came in with cups of coffee for Poppy and me. "Did you get those grass stains off your knees, beautiful?" I teased Jack as he gave me my coffee and a kiss. I got a kiss from my son and Poppy got kisses and a cup of coffee. I could tell from Ren's expression that he had already heard about Jack and Rick's after dark fuck on the nineteenth green at the Ledges. Poppy looked confused but I signaled I would tell him when we weren't around the little ones. Ren and I herded the little ones into the shower as Jack filled Poppy in on his and Jack's adventure at the Ledges. It felt so good to be able to do a real shampoo without that damned bandage on my head. I took a little extra time and was doing my second rinse when I realized Bradley had joined us. Each of us took a little one and got them squeaky clean. The shower was uneventful and free of any talk of puberty or pantygate – at least for a while. "We're wearing our new underwear to school today," Landry said. "Which underwear is that?" I asked. "The ones we got at Target" Flynn answered. "You boys have been shopping?" I asked. "Yes, sir, Landry said. "On the way to eat last night we asked Bradley and Kurt to stop at Target. We told them we needed some underwear and they let us pick out what we wanted." "That's great," I said. "I can't wait to see them. You'll have to show me after breakfast." Ren herded all three back into the bedroom as Bradley and I lingered in the shower. "Rob," Bradley said, "we didn't know how to handle it. We were on the way to dinner and the boys, just as they told you asked us to stop at Target for underwear. We went into the children's section and they picked out several pairs of little girls' panties like the ones Landry wore home from school yesterday. Neither Kurt nor I knew how to handle the situation so we both tried to channel you and we did what we thought you would do. I'm sorry if we screwed up. I felt okay about what we did but I think Kurt was really afraid you wouldn't like it." The handsome boy looked as if he might start crying. I hugged him. "Bradley," I said, "you and Kurt did exactly what I would have done. Is it the right thing? Who the fuck knows? You stayed cool, didn't make a big deal of things and got the underwear the boys wanted." "Kurt and I were worried we might have done the wrong thing," he said. "You and Kurt were both acting in what you perceived as the best interests of our children," I said. "I know you both adore them. There is no way either of you would ever knowingly do anything to damage or hurt those boys in any way. If any of those three should, God forbid, turn out to be serial killers or terrorists, I seriously doubt it will because people who adored them bought them a few pairs of panties." Poppy came into the shower and asked if he were interrupting anything. We assured him he was not and he said he was going to take a quick shower. He said Jack and Ren had taken our clean boys up to the house to start getting their breakfasts. Jack had also told him Kurt and Rhett were cooking pancakes with fresh bananas and blueberry syrup. I knew we might need showers again after those boys got finished with that sticky breakfast. "Rob, I should probably warn you about something," Bradley said. The boy had one of the fluffy white terrycloth robes we kept around and I was in my black boxer briefs. "I hope you won't think we're bugging you, but Rick left Jack and me in charge of making sure you're okay today while he's in Nashville," Bradley said. "He really didn't want to go but it's obviously a very big day for the company he's working with. I think they're actually taking things operational for the first time today and he said if the shit hits the fan he has no choice but to be there. He made it clear we are to have eyes on you every minute he's away. He really loves you." "I know," I said. "I love him and I love you, Bradley. I really hope you know how much I love you." "I do know that, Rob," he said as he put his arms around my neck and pulled me close for a kiss. I pulled his body close to mine and I could feel us both hardening. "We've got kids we have to get to school," I said. "I'd love nothing more than some playtime with you. You are one of the sexiest people I ever met and I really am wanting you." I guided his hand to the crotch of my briefs. He felt my rapidly hardening dick and smiled. Then he took my hand and guided it under his robed to feel his thick, hardening monster. We kissed. "Maybe we could schedule a round of golf," he laughed as he swatted my buttcheeks. "I'll meet you on the nineteenth green," I said as he put his arm around me and we headed up to the main house for breakfast with our own very unique little family. Poppy got there right behind Bradley and me and as I started to pour fresh coffee, the phone rang. I realized our phones used to rarely ring at this hour, but lately it had become a rather usual occurrence. It was Coach Ennis. "Good morning, Rob," he said. "Sorry once again to be calling so early but I hoped to reach you before you started your day. Is there any way you and Poppy might make an appearance at our football team practice this afternoon. It's nothing big and nothing official. It's to introduce you guys to the team and any parents around as the first members of our new sports advisory council. Selena wants us to be a model for openness and transparency in everything we do." "I'm sure I can be there and Poppy probably can, but who the hell is `Selena"?" "Oh, I'm sorry, Rob," he said. "Selena is Principal Walden. We've spent so much time together in the last couple of days, she asked me to ditch the formality." "You're not yielding to temptation are you, my friend?" I asked. "Tempted? Yes," he said. "But vulnerable and stupid? Hell no. She's a really attractive woman and one of the sharpest educators I've ever met. If I'd met her before I met my wife, I'd say there's a strong possibility we could've made a house full of beautiful biracial babies. But trust me. At this point in my life it is simply not an option." "I was actually only kidding when I asked," I said. "The way you answered indicates to me it has crossed your mind." "You know me too well, my friend," he said. "I wanted to tell you I'm really happy with Brett. Before yesterday I wasn't sure. He needs encouragement. I find him also a sexy little fucker." "I thought you did," I said. "And as strange as it sounds, sharing your foreskin with the boy got him on the path." "Hope we've got enough foreskin to keep him on the path. Love you," he said. We signed off and I went back to the kitchen. A couple of minutes later, the phone rang again. It was Gil. "Just wanted to apologize for sneaking away without saying thank you for a beautiful night and a place to sleep," he said. I didn't want you to think I had no social skills." "I've known for a long time you had no social skills, you rude bastard," I laughed. "I don't think I got a total of more than forty five minutes sleep last night. That beautiful boy Jack is just insatiable. And your friend Rick is one of the sexiest fuckers I've ever met. There's something about the guy that just makes you want to see his smile." "I know what you mean," I said. "I didn't get to see him this morning," I said. "He had an early meeting in Nashville." "I know," Gil said. "We left at the same time. But only after one more round in the shower with our favorite little fuckbunny." "I'm not sure I even have had a chance to tell you about the night he and Ren both fucked me," I said. "That was one for my autobiography." "Fuck me, man!" he exclaimed. "I'm getting hard again and I really need to get some work done. I just called to see if there's anything I can bring tonight? I know the email went out for the meeting at six. I understand there was a little fuck up in that it went to the whole membership but I'm sure only the guys who are supposed to attend will show up." "No prob," I said. "I'll have plenty of beer, sodas and waters and I thought we'd do either pizza or tacos after the meeting. Any of the boys who want to hand out and swim will be welcome." "Man, there are a couple of those boys I'd like to check out," he said. "Am I becoming a horny old fuck?" "You're not that old," I chuckled as we signed off. I had barely put the phone down when it rang again. "It's me again," Gil said. "Your sex talk got me sidetracked. One of the reasons I called is that I was at the courthouse late yesterday. I meant to tell you last night but I got sidetracked then too. But there's talk that something may be coming down with old Judge Bowers. I can't get any handle at all on what it is, there's just buzz that something is going on. You know there's a vacancy on the State Supreme Court. I hope that idiot cunt of a governor we have wouldn't consider Bowers but stranger things have happened. Have you talked to Michael lately?" "No, but I need to give him a call today so I'll see if he's heard anything," I said." "Thanks, bud."We hung up and I found the group waiting patiently for me in the dining room. Everyone had a stack of pancakes with fresh sliced bananas and blueberry syrup in front of them, along with link sausages. It looked and smelled fantastic. As I sat, everyone at the table went silent and held hands. Everyone was looking at me so I figured it was my turn to offer a blessing. "Father-Mother-Creator, thank you. Thank you for everything. Thank you for friends and family. Thank you for sending people to love us. And I mean love us in every way. We are thankful for our bodies and that we are all able to enjoy the countless pleasures our bodies can bring to ourselves and to others. Help us with being wise enough to discern how we best use our bodies in your service and in service to others. Guide and protect us all this day and nourish us with this wonderful food. Amen." The pancakes were the best I had ever tasted and the guys had alternated pancakes with layers of sliced bananas and blueberries. The whole thing had been dusted with powdered sugar and had blueberry syrup drizzled over the whole stack. It was delicious. I learned it was one of Rhett's favorite breakfasts that his mother had served on special occasions when he was growing up. I realized I actually didn't know much about Rhett, other than that his dad had been one of the most successful orthopaedic surgeons in Birmingham who had divorced his mother and had become a notorious chaser of the puss. Rhett had told me he had come out to his father who had suggested he keep his sexual choices to himself and find a wife to use as a beard and to give him some kids. Rhett had chosen to reject his advice and had even changed his medical specialty to distance himself from his father. I noticed Kurt was being quieter than usual and I hoped he was okay. The little ones went on and on about their evening of wild wings, ball pits and miniature golf. They had a great time with Kurt and Bradley. Kurt seemed more subdued this morning and I felt something was troubling him. I asked Ren and Rhett about their dinner at Ruth's Chris and both said their meal was wonderful and the service was great. He was a new fan of creamed spinach and wanted a recipe so that he could fix it for all of us. Ren told me they had talked for quite a while about Les Miserables' as Ren is currently reading the book and it was one of Rhett's favorites, as was the musical stage version. I decided to have a little fun with Jack so I asked him about his and Rick's evening at the chef's dinner at the Ledges. He said the food was exciting and beautifully served. He said they had wine pairings with each course, but he had only taken a couple of tiny sips. Rick had a tiny bit more and had said the selections were excellent. By now everyone except the little ones had learned about Jack and Rick's sexual romp on the 19th green and getting caught fucking by the club manager. Poppy asked if he was considering giving up swimming and taking up golf. We all enjoyed a good laugh over that one, including Jack. The boys and men all pitched in and the table was cleared and dishes in the dishwasher within eight minutes. It had become a bit of a game after meals in our house to see how quickly and efficiently the clearing and clean-up could be done. Even the little ones participated. As they finished up, I asked Kurt if he might join me in the library. We poured fresh cups of coffee and sat down. He looked as if he might be on the verge of tears. "Kurt, buddy," I began, "I know this has been an incredibly emotional week for you. What you went through with the divorce and your family are things no person should ever be put through. You seemed to make it through all that exceptionally well. But I get the sense something is off with you this morning." He looked me in the eye and I saw his eyes were full of tears. "Buddy, tell me what's going on," I said. "What can I do to help? Can you tell me what's going on?" He took a minute and seemed to calm somewhat. "Rob," he began, "I've really let you down. You guys have been so damned supportive of me and now I've let you down terribly." "Kurt, buddy, I have no idea what you think you've done to let me down," I said. "You have looked after our boys as well or even better than we ourselves could have. Did you not hear how excited they all were sharing their fun last night with our whole group at breakfast? Poppy told me when he came up to say good night, you were all asleep with you holding the Hardy Boys book open on your chest. Poppy said he will cherish that scene in his mind for the rest of his life. What in the world could you think you've done wrong?" "Last night, on the way to dinner, the boys wanted to go shopping," he said. "Yes," I said, "and you and Bradley took our boys shopping and bought them the new underwear they had their hearts set on buying." "But we didn't check with you," he said. "If those boys wear girls' panties they could get made fun of or bullied or..." "Stop, Kurt," I said. "I won't listen to this. Do you really think I wouldn't have done exactly the same thing? You did exactly what Stewart or I would have done. If Landry wants to wear panties, I don't give a rat's ass. If Ren wants to put on a pair of silky panties and ride the Santa float in the town's fucking Christmas parade, I wouldn't care at all. I'd just hope I'd be the first to get to see his beautiful blonde ass in them. You and Bradley were spot on and I so appreciate you two." "That's not all, Rob," he said. He was looking at the floor, unable to meet my eyes. "You know, when Poppy told you we were all in the bed with the boys naked?" he asked. "Of course," I said. "Our boys always sleep naked and they expect the same of anyone in their bed, whether that's fair or not." "Well, little Eli kept putting his hand down in my pubes," he said. "You know how the boy always has a hand in Poppy's or Rick's or your chest fur?" "Yes, I've noticed that," I said. "Turns out his daddy has developed quite a chest pelt since the smooth-chested boy I knew in college is all grown up." "Well, he kept putting his little hand down in my pubes," he said. "You know I'm nowhere near as hairy up top as you guys and it obviously wasn't hairy enough for him. He kept putting his hand in my pubes. I would gently move it back up to my chest, but the next thing I knew it would be back down below. Well, I woke up around four in the morning and his hand was back down in my pubes but I was rock hard. His hand was touching my hardon and I couldn't get it soft. I tried to will it soft but I couldn't. I turned away and jacked myself off. I ate the load so there'd be no trace. Then I felt so ashamed." "Kurt," I said, as I drew him in for a hug, Kurt, you dear, sweet man. You were stimulated and your dick got hard. Feel of mine right now." I took his hand and rubbed it over the crotch of my pants. "You're hard," he said. "Of course I'm hard," I said. "Kurt, you grew up with unfathomable guilt and shame. You did absolutely nothing to be ashamed of or guilty about. You had a normal physiological response to a sexual stimulus. We need to realize that these three little boys are soon going to be very sexual little creatures and how we respond to them will determine their attitudes. We don't want to give them the same bullshit guilt complexes we were saddled with. I think what you did was perfectly appropriate. I love the way you care for our boys. They're lucky to have you." "I think I know why I got hard while I was sleeping," he said. "Why was that," I asked. "I was dreaming about Bradley in a slightly larger pair of those silky, thin panties," he said. "Is that awful?" "Hell no, it's not awful," I said. "I was having the same thoughts earlier this morning. Did you buy him a pair of sexy panties?" "Yes, but he doesn't know it yet," he said. "I look forward to an invitation to that event," I chuckled. "I love you, Kurtwall." He was startled to hear me use the name he so despised but when he looked and I was smiling, he laughed too and we hugged it out. The boys came down to model their new underwear for me and the rest of the crowd. Eli joined them even though he wasn't yet in school. To be honest, they were sexy as hell with those round little butts stretching the thin, silky fabric to the max. They hid nothing and the outlines of the boys' tiny curved spikes were quite clear. I noticed Kurt seemed uncomfortable until I walked over and put my arm around his waist. "Just enjoy the beauty," I said. He smiled and seemed to relax. I could tell there wasn't a boy or man in that room except the three little ones, whose pants weren't tented. `Okay, boys," I said, "that was lots of fun but it's time to get ready for school. And I hope you'll come home wearing your own underwear today." "What if Suzanne come in the bathroom and wants to see them?" Landry asked. "I think you might just remind Suzanne very nicely that the boys' bathroom is for boys and she might want to use the one for girls," I said. "Do you guys think that might work?" I asked. They seemed to agree it might. Just as we were leaving, Rhett was called in for an emergency at the Madison hospital. After hugs for Kurt as he left for his office, we loaded up the boys and headed for the school. Bradley was driving and Poppy and I were along for the ride. Poppy had asked that he be dropped by his office to make sure things were all good before his lunch at the Ledges with the Vandenburgh sisters. Jack and Bradley were free until time for their swim team practice which coincided with the time of the football team practice Poppy and I were planning to attend. Poppy, Jack and Bradley walked our little ones into the school while Eli, Ren and I stayed in the car. "So you and Rhett had a nice time last night?" I asked. "I had a great time, dad," he said. "Rhett is so smart. He's handsome too but I mostly like that he's smart." "I'm glad to hear you say that," I said. "Being pretty or handsome is nice, but we should never let that be our only criteria for choosing the people or person we spend time with. You looked so handsome, it almost made me cry." I put my arm around him and he laid his head on my chest. I inhaled the fragrance of his clean, soft hair. "I really enjoyed being with him," Ren said. "Then when we got home...that was great too." "You mean the sex?" I asked. "Yes sir," he said. "Dad, I'm so glad we can be this honest." "I am too, son," I said. "I kind of don't understand something," he said. "Like when we got home and had sex, you know how good Rhett can make you feel. He made me feel good three times and he had his five times." "Yes," I said. "He's a very sexy man and an expert lover." "Well, last night after we finished and we were going to sleep and he was holding me, I thought how nice it would be to have him in my bed every night," he said. "He's very good and he makes me feel incredible. I started thinking how fun it might be if it was just us two and maybe we even adopted kids or something and had our own family." He was silent for a minute or two. "And then?" I asked. He smiled one of his beautiful broad smiles at me. "And then this morning, I saw you in the shower and you're so sexy and I saw Bradley and Jack and Kurt," "And you realized what?" I asked. "That, while I really enjoyed my time with Rhett, I'm nowhere close to ready to just be with one person," he said. "I'm not sure I'll ever really be ready to just be with one person for the rest of my life. Why would anyone really want to do that when there are just so many opportunities?" "You're about the smartest kiddo on this whirling planet and I don't know what I could ever have done to deserve you," I said. With little Eli asleep in his car seat, I shared a warm hot kiss with my son, and then just held his sweet head on my chest until the others returned. "Miss Anderson asked about you," Poppy said as he got into the car. "She was worried when she didn't see you." "I hope you told her the funeral has not been scheduled yet," I chuckled. "Was the boys' little friend, Suzanne, there yet and was she wearing a jockstrap?" I asked. "She was there, but her skirt covered her jock," Jack said. "I just pray my younger son won't come home this afternoon in Miss Anderson's granny panties," I said. We dropped my older son at school and then headed for the Derrick Construction office. I'm not sure what I had expected but I think I had always imagined the office of a construction company would be a double wide built up on a concrete block foundation. Derrick was anything but. It was a very attractive glass and wood structure with high beams, beautiful furnishings and lots of light. I realized what a big operation the company was and better appreciated the sweat equity father and son had invested to make the company a leader in this town. Poppy said he would call his driver to take him to the Ledges for lunch and return him to our home in plenty of time for me to join him at football practice. He gave us all hugs and seemed reluctant to leave little Eli, but he managed to do so. We checked the time and saw we had enough time to run little Eli by for a quick visit with his dad. I felt in my heart if Elliott was coming back to us at all, the key was his son. The boys insisted on pulling right up to the entrance to let me out. Bradley stayed with Eli and me as Jack went to park the car. When we got to Elliott's room, of course he was there alone. I invited Jack and Bradley to join me for the visit and we sat little Eli on the bed beside his father. The boy immediately lay beside his handsome dad and one hand went for the chest fur. "Elliott, these are my friends," I said. "They're both in college and about the same age you were when we first met. They want to meet you. We brought your precious boy to see you and he's holding on to you for dear life. It's like I told you before, we need you to come back for your baby. But if you can't make it back, we'll love him and take care of him. I sat on the edge of the bed and put my arm around his neck. The nurses had obviously been in recently to bathe him because he smelled fresh and clean. His respirations were even. It really was as though he were just asleep and might awaken at any moment. I saw Eli sniff him several times as though memorizing his scent. "Is there anything you want to tell your daddy, Eli?" I asked him. "I love you, daddy," the boy said in his tiny voice. "Please wake up." He leaned in and kissed his dad's cheek and I did the same. As I did so, I began to gently brush his soft black hair away from his forehead. "You beautiful boy-man, please come back to us if you can." We got Eli and left. Jack and Bradley thought he was a remarkably handsome man. The truth was that he was a more handsome man than he had been as a boy. We were all pretty quiet on our way home. As we got there, Jacko and another young man from the construction company were arriving. We greeted them as they headed downstairs to work. I asked Jacko if the tile guys had finished and he said he was about to find out. As I started to the guest house, the phone rang. It was Stewart. Things weren't good. I could tell it the minute I heard his voice. His mother and the two step-daughters had gotten into a screaming match the night before at the hospital. When Ceci walked into her husband's hospital room, she said she found the sisters talking to their father, trying to get him to let them get his lawyer in and make some changes in the will. "Of course, Ceci was furious, especially when the sisters accused her of pressuring their father to cut them out of the will completely. Ceci, of course denied that but things got out of control. Nurses came in several times and warned them that if things didn't calm down, they would have no choice but to call security. Things kept getting worse. The girls wanted to see the current will and Ceci refused. The old man was siding with Ceci and that infuriated the sisters. One of the sisters, I think it was Sybbie, picked up a bag of IV fluids the nurse was about to hang and threw it at Ceci. She hit her in the head and Ceci saw red. It couldn't possibly have hurt – it was just a plastic bag full of fluid, for God's sake. I'm told the Ceci charged both girls and they had a brief but intense hair-pulling cussing bitch fight," he explained. "Oh my God, Stewart," I said. "That's horrendous. Did they settle down?" "Oh Hell no," he said. "Nurses tried to break it up and settle them down. They ended up hauling all three of them out of here and taking them to jail. I wasn't here and the nurses called me and I've been here all night listening to the old man wonder where he went wrong. I could answer that pretty easily but I haven't had the guts to tell him yet." "So where are your mother and the girls?" "Still in jail, as far as I know," he chuckled. "I'll be damned if I was going to find a lawyer and go get them out with a slap on the wrist. Rob, that kind of behavior is simply inexcusable. I want to come home to you and our boys." "You just can't do that," I told him. You've only got a couple more days then at least you'll have a break." "I know, buddy," he said. "I just feel like I'm right in the center of a shitstorm that I had nothing to do with creating." "That's exactly where you are," I said. "Is your stepfather any better or worse?" "The doctors say there's no real change," Stewart said. "They worried because his heart rate and his respirations really shot up during and after the fight but he seems to have calmed down and everything is pretty much back to baseline." "That's good, I guess," I said. "Any progress on a decision whether to move him to M.D. Anderson or Sloan-Kettering yet?" "None at all," he said. "They're all dug into their positions and no one is budging. Mom, as the spouse has the right to make the final decision but the girls are threatening to file something with the court which could stay any orders. The litigation could take forever and it would almost certainly outlive the patient. I've never felt so utterly helpless and hopeless. The old man is begging me to be an intermediary and somehow make peace between these bitches." "Do you think there's any room for compromise?" I asked "I don't think so," he said. "I tried that. I made the mistake of bringing up Vanderbilt as an option for treatment. I knew you had been pleased with the treatment Marcie got there. It was a huge mistake. Ceci went into a tearful monologue about how her precious daughter had disappeared while at Vanderbilt's nursing school. In her story, my sister was a veritable Florence Nightingale, destined to change the entire profession. That would be the same daughter who in fact ran away to escape a horrible home life and whom my parents wrote off as dead long before she actually died. It was quite the Oscar worthy performance and it was all a bunch of bullshit unless she's somehow convinced herself that it's truth. If I didn't know the truth, I might have bought her story. She's very convincing, Rob." "When will they be released from jail?" I asked. "I expect it was a twenty four hour hold," he said. I'm sure mommy already has a lawyer. I can't imagine what will happen when they're all released. According to the nurses, Ceci told them they will never darken the door of her home again so I guess they'll have to find somewhere else to stay. It is, after all, Ceci's house. I don't think she'll allow those two another minute with their father outside her presence. The saddest thing is that my mother doesn't need this man's fortune. Dad left her quite comfortable. It's all about greed with her. Blinding, unadulterated greed. My God, I miss you and our boys and our life." "You know, Stewart," I said, "that we miss you terribly. We all want you here. But that is not my motivation in saying no one could possibly blame you for just walking away from the whole horrible situation. I don't think there is a human on the planet who would blame you for just getting away from that whole toxic environment and getting as far as possible away from them all." "I think you're right, Rob," he said. "The problem is that I've inserted myself into the situation now. I feel obligated to see it through. I think there is a very real danger there could be violence and someone could end up badly injured or even dead. I certainly can't allow that if there is anything I might possibly do to prevent it. I couldn't live with myself." "I totally understand, Stewart," I said. "Just please take care of yourself. It sounds like those people really are potentially dangerous. Protect yourself. You owe that to your son." "I do know that," he said quietly. "I also know I love you." He promised to call when the boys were home from school and we signed off. It was almost time for my physical therapy appointment. As I passed the pool, I saw Jack and Bradley were working in the pool with Eli. "Does he know how to swim?" I asked. "He knows some rudimentary stuff – enough to save him if he fell in," Bradley said. "We'll have him swimming like a guppy before too long," Jack said. "Hopefully he'll be able to surprise his daddy with how well he swims." "From your mouth to God's ear," I said quietly to no one in particular. I got undressed and put on just a pair of athletic shorts. I heard a tap on the door and assumed it would be Russ, my physical therapist. Instead it was Jacko, reporting the tile guys had done an outstanding job. He was hoping I'd soon be able to get down the stairs to inspect the work. I asked who the guy helping him today was. "It's my little brother, Tommy," Jacko said. "He just graduated high school last spring and he's attending the U. Derrick told me I could use him to help out on jobs when he's not in class. He's my baby brother and I love him a lot," he said. "I'd love to meet him later," I said. "I hope you and Tommy will join our Jack and Bradley and little Eli for a swim later when you get a break, if you'd like." "Thanks, Mr. Ross," he said. "I think we'd both enjoy that." "And one more thing," I said. "It's Rob – no more Mr. Ross." "Understood," he said with a smile. Just after Jacko left, Russell arrived, ready for my physical therapy session. He seemed even more upbeat than on the first time we met. He asked if I was ready to be tortured and I told him it was what I lived for. He asked me if I had done any stretching and I told him I had not as I had just gotten back to the house. I assured him that would not happen again. He suggested I take a shower in water as hot as I could stand to warm up my muscles and he put an arm around my waist as I walked into the shower. I took off my shorts and set them aside as I got under the warm water. He talked about how a hot shower before any therapy or exercise session is a good idea. That was information I didn't know. I got back into my shorts and went back out into the sitting area. He suggested I have a seat on the side of the massage table and proceeded to do some stretching with me. His hands were very skillful and his voice exuded confidence. I liked the way he made me feel and it didn't hurt that he was nice to look at. He asked what had been the most frustrating part of my recovery. I told him it was very clearly my inability to climb stairs. I explained that all the bedrooms in the main house were on the second floor, so I couldn't sleep in my own bedroom or go in to tuck my boys in at night. That was, without a doubt, the most frustrating part of this for me. He said we would start doing some work on stairs immediately and I'd be tucking my boys in before I knew it. I was glad to hear that. He asked about the stairs and I offered to show him. He liked that idea, so he put my knee brace back on and got my cane and we made our way up to the main house so he could see the stairs. When we got into the kitchen I was feeling thirsty so I got us each a bottle of water. He commented on what a great house it was and I showed him around the first floor. I explained that the basement was currently being renovated into a gym as a surprise for my older son's birthday. I showed him the stairs and he suggested we go up and down a couple of times. He had me wait there while he ran back to the guest house to get a belt so he could ensure I didn't take a spill on the stairs. When he got back, he fastened that belt around my waist and gripped it in his strong hands. "You're a really hairy guy," he said as he attached the belt at my waist. "Yep," I said. "Been that way since I hit puberty. I hit it before all my friends did and felt kind of freakish until they started catching up." "I have no idea what I'm going to look like when my body hair grows out. I shaved from the very first time I started growing any pubes or pits," he said. "I was really serious about swimming and my coach insisted we all keep our bodies completely smooth. The last time I shaved was a few days before I graduated so I'm still in the prickly stage of growing out. It's not very comfortable." "I'm sure it's not comfortable at all," I said. I told him about my friend Alejandro's son who had shaved his pubes because all the other guys on his soccer team did it and how much the boy had regretted it. I told him that Javi's pubes were growing back pretty nicely now but he still didn't have the wild full pubic bush that his father and brother have. I also told him about Ren's decision not to shave for swimming after coming very close to doing so. I told him I had been secretly glad he didn't because I so love the way my boy looks. I was finding this young man easy to talk to as we climbed the stairs twice. After ascending the second time I was feeling a little tired so I invited him into my bedroom to rest a minute. He excused himself to use the bathroom and when he came out he looked pleasantly surprised. "That is a very nice attachment you have on your shower," he said. "Is it what I think it is?" I had not seen it yet but I knew what he was talking about because Rick had told me he installed them in my bathroom and in Ren's. Rick had installed an attachment in the shower which was a handheld enema device, so that a syringe or bag would no longer be necessary. It required only regulating the water temperature and then inserting and filling with water until the urge to evacuate grew strong. "What do you think it is, buddy?" "I think it's one of those devices you just put into yourself and it cleans you out. Most of our swim team started cleaning themselves before meets a couple of years ago. I know a lot of them did it together and they seemed to have a lot of fun with it. Most of them said it was pretty sexy," he explained. I asked him if he had ever done it and he said he had done it but never with anyone else around "Why is that, Russ?" I asked. "That is if I'm not being too personal." "No, sir," he said. "Well, it is kind of personal but I don't mind telling you. You're a really easy kind of guy to talk to. I didn't do it because I wasn't allowed to." "I'm still not understanding, Russ," I said. "You mean your father wouldn't let you do it?" "Kind of," he said. "It wasn't my dad. I never even told him about it. It was my Heavenly Father. At least he was my Heavenly Father at the time. Still may be but I don't much think so. See, I was raised in a Mormon family. It was my dad and all my brothers. Dad wasn't a Mormon until he married my mother. We were all raised in the church. When mom died, he kept us going to church although he wasn't as devout as he used to be. I think it was partly because he thought Heavenly Father should have saved our mother and partly because all the big dude s in the church kept pushing him to get married right after mom died. They were urging him to take a younger wife and make more children for the church. They said it was his duty. He got kind of burned out, but he still made us boys go. "Wow!" I said. "I'd never thought about that. Weren't you supposed to be wearing that magic underwear all the time?" I then realized I had overstepped and was making fun of his religion. "I'm sorry I said that, Russ, I really am," I said. "It was a thoughtless remark and it was in terrible taste and it was insensitive." "Please don't worry about that," he said. "The fact is, I had to go to the ward president at our church and get special permission to wear a Speedo. The church insisted I not change in any of the changing rooms and not be nude around other boys or men. I had to wear my Speedo under my clothes and only take the other clothes off when I reached the pool area. After I swam, I had to put my clothes back on over a wet Speedo and not change until I got home in the privacy of my bathroom." "Wow, Russ, I guess I just never thought about how it would be for a Mormon swimmer. Is it the same for kids who wrestle?" I asked. "I don't think you could hide that underwear under a singlet." "There are a couple of companies making singlets now which will cover the undergarments," he said. "Those companies are, needless to say, owned by Mormons and making lots of money off naïve kids. I'm pretty much over the whole thing. If it's wrong not to wear the underwear, it's still wrong even if some ward president says it's okay to wear a Speedo while competing. It just didn't work for me. If it's right to wear it, it's only right if you wear it all the time. For me, it's kind of like the argument about abortion. If it's really wrong and you really believe it's murder, it's still murder if the pregnancy was caused by rape of incest. All these exceptions are made up garbage. Something is right or it's wrong, for the most part I've pretty much come to the conclusion it's mostly a bunch of bullshit rules, made up by some arbitrary person to fit their particular set of beliefs. I just can't." "You're one helluva smart kid," I said. "And I thought you were just a pretty face with a hot little body." The boy blushed a deep shade of red, but smiled t me. He explained that his oldest brother had come out during his first year in college and his father had completely cut him from the family. He cut off any financial support and forbade him even speaking by phone with his brothers. I think now he regrets that, but he made his bed. Even I hated dad for it for a while. Now I am just indifferent to him. It takes way too much energy to hate. I've had a lot of the same feelings since I first started puberty but I was afraid to even let myself think about them." "How long did it take you?" I asked. "You mean to come to terms with who or what I think I am?" he asked. "Still not there. Seeing my brother shunned by his own family broke something in me. I know I'm attracted to other guys but I've never let myself." "You've never let yourself do anything?" "I've jacked off," he chuckled. "A lot. But that's all. I've been tempted a lot. I've gone to gay bars several times and even talked to guys but I always chickened out and went home alone. I was secretly glad I didn't have to change in the locker rooms with other guys because I was so afraid I would be caught looking at other boys or getting hard. I just had it ingrained in me for so long that it was wrong and it was bad and that I would be an apostate. I thought my dad and my brothers would be with my mom in heaven, but I would be left out – just me and my older brother who sinned against our Heavenly Father." We had been slowly up and down the stairs twice and I was definitely tiring. I told him I thought I might need a break so when we reached the top, we went into my bedroom and sat down on the side of my bed. "This is the biggest bed I've ever seen," he said. I told him the story of who had built our house. He knew the story of the man's fall from grace as he'd been entering physical therapy school when the whole saga began. "Kiddo," I said. "I hate what you've been through. No one should ever have to go through it. I promise you that you'll know when the place and the time and the person are right for you to enjoy your first sexual experience. Don't feel rushed. You have a whole lot of pleasure ahead of you and you're going to make a person or a lot of people very happy. I hope you will know that when you're here, there's nothing to hide. It's pretty much our only rule. The two guys who were at the pool when you came in, Jack and Bradley live in our guest house and both are on the swim team at the U. I have two sons and a good friend who is a Methodist pastor and his little son live with us too. We have a couple of other friends, a guy who just went through a nasty divorce and a new neurosurgeon in town are crashing here as well. We're kind of a family of boys and men. We help each other out in every way. I love them all and I'd love for you to get to know them. I heard a voice calling my name from the stairwell and it was Rhett. He had handled his emergency at the hospital and had returned home and found me gone from the guest house. He had given very strict orders that I was not to be ambulating alone and not to be climbing stairs. "Rob, what the hell do you think you're doing?" he asked as he walked into the room and saw Russ with me. "Oh, I'm sorry he said when he saw the therapist was with me. "I thought you had gone off on your own and were doing stairs like I told you not to." "Cool your jets, Dr. Curry," I chuckled. "I'm in the very capable hands of Russell, my young physical therapist." I introduced the two of them. Russ realized the last name. "Your dad isn't Dr. Larry Curry, is he?" Russ asked. "One and the same," Rhett laughed. "I'm the son of the biggest asshole in Birmingham." Russ tried to assure him that his dad was a nice guy but Rhett wasn't having it. Russ told him he had done clinicals for two years in his dad's orthopaedic clinic. "I can take one look at you and your body and I know damned well, you didn't get through clinics in that practice without my old man having his hands all over you, "he said. "Dad really doesn't care about what equipment you have between your legs. He's all about quantity." Russell went silent and was looking at the floor. "Son, are you okay?" I asked him. "No," he said quietly. "The truth is I was really hoping to get a job as a sports medicine trainer at your dad's clinic. It was all I ever wanted to do. One day I was making rounds with your dad and he pulled me into an empty exam room. He started feeling of me and put my hand on his crotch. At the time I was a ... Well, I still am, but I knew he was married and it was all just wrong and,..." "You dared to turn down the famous Dr. Lawrence Curry?" he asked. "No one does that. What the big man wants, he gets, whether it's a slice of puss or a helping of cock," he laughed. "Sorry it happened, kid, but I can fill in the rest of this story. You were probably one of the top kids in your class and felt sure you'd have a spot on their sports medicine team, but after graduation you were out. You could have gotten a job in Birmingham, but it would have been some really shitty job. I'm guessing you saw he'd blackballed your ass and you got the hell out of town." Russell was staring at the floor. He looked as if he might cry but his eyes were dry. "That's exactly what happened," the young therapist said. "I had been told by the manager of the therapy department I'd have a place after graduation. Three weeks before graduation, he came to me and apologized, but said he'd been wrong and there was nothing for me there. He suggested I start applying around town and told me he was sorry but neither he nor any of the docs in the group would be able to provide a reference. I knew exactly what had happened. I was too embarrassed to tell anyone. I figured no one would believe my word against the word of one of the foremost surgeons in that town. I was having a tough time with family issues, so I decided to move up here and try to get a fresh start." Rhett sat down beside the boy and put an arm around him. Young Russ laid his head on the man's chest. "I'm so sorry, Russell," he said. "I really am. I hope you didn't think I was making light of what happened. It's just that that asshole has ruined so many fucking lives and he's always gotten by with it. A couple of times there have been threats of legal action. Hospital administrators deny anything happened and their machine starts sliming the people dad hit on. And dad's not the only one in the group doing it. I think all of them have at one time or another. But they protect each other and the dollars keep rolling in for the hospitals. I really, really am sorry, kid." "I'm really sorry, guys," Russ said. "I came here to provide physical therapy for Mr. Ross and here I've laid out all my personal stuff. I apologize and I assure you it will never happen again." He stood up and started to refasten the belt used to assist me on the stairs. I gently took his arm and guided him to a seated position between Rhett and me. "First thing," I said. "I'm Rob and he's Rhett. Second thing. You don't us an apology. You're another boy who's been damaged. Third thing. You're a beautiful and desirable boy with a body that won't stop. I hope you'll let us help you heal. But I want to assure you of one thing. You will never get pressure from anyone in this house to do anything, sexual or otherwise, that you don't want to do or don't feel ready for. I make you that promise." "I'm going to share with you guys something that's going on," Rhett said. "It's too early to be sharing but sometimes you just have to share or you'll burst wide open. Russ, I came here to get away from my dad's influence and his practice. There's a very dominant neurosurgery group in this town and they've tried to freeze me out. There is also a young orthopaedic surgeon who has just moved here. He had a similar experience not at all unlike yours during his residency with my dad and one of the other docs. He had been offered a position but the offer was rescinded after he rebuffed their advances. He feels pretty burned with the large ortho groups. We've been discussing opening a clinic and sharing space and staff. We both love sports medicine. Rob's friend, Rick is in Nashville today as a company he's with is going online with a whole new system that could revolutionize the medical community. If that works out and the pieces fall into place, we may set up a two-man sports medicine shop and we'll be going after the big sports programs in this town." "That sounds great," Russell said. "But I've been told the large ortho group had all the contracts nailed down for the next eight years at least." "That was true," Rhett said. "Until a couple of days ago. The new Athletic Director at the city's largest school says all agreements are being reevaluated. He seems to have some backing among the school board and I'm hearing he'll get anything he wants. He's doing the same thing with the swim team at the U. He says the whole system in this town has been a swamp. He plans to drain that swamp." "I know very well the man you're talking about, I said. "If he's talking about draining a swamp, he means really draining the swamp, unlike some who claim to be swamp drainers but are only interested in making the swamp murkier and adding their own alligators." "Do you think it might be possible that I could wrangle and introduction to this new AD?" Rhett asked. "I can do maybe a little better than that," I said. "Poppy and I are the first two members of the school's new Sports advisory Council," I said. "We've been invited to football team practice this afternoon. I can also make sure you see the new football coach too, who is an old friend of mine" "Russ," I said, "would you like to join us?" "You bet your underpants I would," he said. ""Are you talking about your magical Mormon underpants?" I teased. "I bet that bubble butt of yours looked great in those things." "Too late," he said. "The first thing I did when I moved here was to burn those damn ugly old things." We all shared a laugh as they got on each side of me and we went down the stairs once more together.